On the fringes of the Darjeeling Hills, a 12 km drive uphill from the river Teesta,

Inspired by its historical legacy, and congenial climate, and idyllic surroundings, International Trust of Traditional Medicine (ITTM) was founded in 1995 by a small group of dedicated researchers and scholars of Mongolian, Indian and German origins.

The Trust's main aspirations are to pursue the study and research of traditional medicine, especially of Indo-Tibetan and allied origins. The ITTM Centre Vijnana Niwas, 3 km on the outskirts of town, offers a scholastic environment for Research and for intensive group activities on Self-Renewal and Inter-Personal Effectiveness as well as for a Retreat.

Currently, a Medical Glossary Database is being prepared based on the 7th century Ayurvedic Sanskrit text Ashtanga Hridaya Samhita by Vagbhata and its 11th century Tibetan translation, along with German and English equivalents.

The library offers a good collection of original Tibetan medical literature on which an annotated bibliography is being prepared. Two young Tibetan Research Assistants who have been trained at ITTM with the support of Asian Classics Input Project (ACIP), have been working on the input of all ancient Tibetan medical texts into computers, since April 1999 for the Tibetan Medical Digital Research Archive at the ITTM Library. Interested Scholars can have free access to the data for their personal research and do electronic searches while in residence at Vijnana Niwas.

The garden premises has been transformed over the past three years into a Biodynamic Garden. The garden is presently being enlarged for the purpose of trial research cultivation of Tibetan and local medicinal plants under biodynamic conditions.

Both traditions, Ayurveda and Tibetan medicine, require an immense amount of translation, research and documentation, in order to find their rightful place in Western Alternative Health Care. ITTM attempts a modest contribution in this direction. Creating an environment and ambience of healthy learning and unlearning experience that allows intensive research in medical traditions as well as personal healing and growth, have been the mainstream activities of the Centre.

Rooms at Vijnana Niwas

Vijnana Niwas offers guest rooms with 2-3 beds and a common bathroom with hot shower. All guests are welcome to prepare their food in the community kitchen and share the dining and yoga room, the library and the seminar room. Meals can also be arranged for those who choose to do so. Guest Guidelines available on request.

An exclusive guest flat with two fully furnished rooms, an equipped kitchen with gas stove and water filter, and an attached bathroom with hot shower, and an independent telephone is available to long-term researchers and visitors.

The garden also offers a variety of biodynamically grown vegetables for residents.

E-mail, and phone facilities (STD/ISD) are available nearby. Local calls can be made from the centre and international calls can be received as well.

Volunteers

We welcome Volunteers who wish to learn and apply bio-dynamic organic principles in the cultivation of medicinal plants and vegetables on one acre of cultivable land around Vijnana Niwas.

ITTM has been offering an exclusive INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEER PROGRAMME for a group of interested individuals to actively contribute to the trial cultivation of Tibetan medicinal plants since 2001.

ITTM also offers opportunities for Hands-on Experience in the Biodynamic Medicinal Plant Cultivation Research Project. If you have studied Biodynamics or are in the midst of such studies, having some orientation in performing quality testing, and would wish to have a completely new work experience of biodynamics in an exotic flora and fauna vegetation of the lower Himalayas (range 500-2500 meters altitude), you are welcome to participate for 3-6 months.

We encourage residential researchers and volunteers to share their knowledge (on health, culture, music or art) with the local children during Sunday Creativity Classes and thus further education and international exchange in the hill region.

Contact us for details!